TEAGASC SAYS PRICE STABILITY KEY FOR FARMING SECTOR - Teagasc - the Agricultural and Food Development Authority - holds its yearly outlook conference in Portlaoise today.
Teagasc's Trevor Donellan says that agriculture was almost pushed to one side during the years of the Celtic Tiger and experienced a very difficult patch. The global recession in 2009 also hit the sector, but the dairy and cereal sector has recovered quite well in 2010 with exports up strongly. He says that green commodities are currently experiencing a boom similar to one in 2008 as prices for some key commodities are just sky-rocketing.
UCC's Micheal Keane says that agricultural prices have been very volatile over the last four years due to changes in the EU's common agriculture policies. He says that farmers and the food processing industries are finding it hard to invest because of the volatility. He says too high farm prices lead to substitution and is a cause of major concern for the industry.
Teagasc is detailing new price risk instruments at its conference today and Mr Keane says that while farmers may not yet take much notice of them, they will be useful to co-ops and food processing companies. He believes that trading and hedging will offer farmers more secure prices.
***
MORNING BRIEFS - China's gross domestic product grew at a faster-than-expected 10.3% in 2010, according to official statistics this morning. GDP figures for the final three months of the year also defied expectations of a slowdown, with an increase to 9.8%. Next month, when Japan's economic figures come out, we will learn whether China has now overtaken Japan as the second biggest economy in the world. But other figures show that Chinese inflation was 4.6% in December, down from a 28-month high of 5.1% the previous month, as food price pressures eased. Inflation overall for 2010 was 3.3%. China has raised interest rates twice in the past four months and raised banks' required reserves in a bid to control food and housing costs.
*** The ESRI expects exports to increase by 6%, 50,000 people to emigrate and another 25,000 jobs to be lost this year because of income tax increases in the Budget, continuing problems in the banking industry, and a collapse in consumer confidence depressing demand.
*** US software group Quest is set to announce 150 new jobs in Cork over the next two years. The new positions are in finance, software development and renewal, and sales.
*** Belleek Pottery is setting up its own direct sales, marketing and distribution operation in the US as it targets America for major export sales growth. In the past Belleek has been selling its products in the US market through a distributor.
*** Today is the last day of trading for British Airways shares on the FTSE 100 after its merger with Iberia. The airline's branding will remain the same, but the larger merged airline will be called IAG, or International Airlines Group.
*** On the currency markets, the euro is trading at $1.3459 cents and 84.41 pence sterling.
